Complete guide to Etsy listing photos

If you have just started selling on Etsy, it’s essential to understand what size your Etsy listing photos should be. After all of your hard work creating your product, you don’t want to fall short with blurry images that don’t convert to sales on Etsy.

In this post, we will look at the best ways to create and size your Etsy listing images to maximize your chances of a sale.

If you have had a shop for a while and made a few sales – congratulations, Etsy is not a hard platform to start on, but making regular sales and income can be a little more tricky. So you want to ensure you have done everything you can to maximize your chances of a sale, and photos can make or break your Etsy shop. 

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Don’t worry – you don’t have to be an expert on Etsy or have a Bestseller to make any money, but you do need a nice clean looking shop.

What size should my Etsy listing photos be?

Your product photos on Etsy should be a minimum of 2000px (pixels per square inch) along the shortest side. 

What do I mean by this? 

Well – this is the resolution of your image seen in detail. The more pixels you have per square inch, the better quality the photo. 

As Etsy is on the interwebs – they recommend using 72 PPI for images, allowing for high load speed times. To give you some context, you need 300 DPI (dots per square inch) for a good-quality photo to print. 

So Etsy recommends a 2000 px image along the shortest edge. But this is the minimum, and if you can, you should increase this.

Should I use landscape images in my Etsy photos?

Etsy recommends using the first image as a landscape, which means longer across the bottom of the image and shorter up the sides. 

A landscape image will have a ratio of 4:3 – this means four parts across the bottom and three parts up the sides.

You can read more about ratio sizes for my print shop. 

What resolution should my Etsy photos be?

Try to work in Pixels of you can as Etsy wants good clear images and so ideally you want to make your first image 3000px wide and 2250px tall. Four parts across the bottom edge and three parts tall. 

If you are working in 72dpi, your image has a low resolution, ideal for online – but even a 4inch image at 72dpi will not look good. So use pixels where you can. 

But why use a landscape image first on Etsy?

Well, Etsy advises using a landscape image in your first image on your listing as these look better when cropped and appear in search. Ensure your image clearly shows your item in the center and looks good when cropped. 

Don’t use square images as your first image as you can see that search crops them to the landscape.

Hands up who has all of their images in a square format? 

Me!! 

So I have some work to do. 

What size should I use for the rest of my Etsy images?

Any size you wish as long as the image is clear and looks good in zoom mode. You may want to optimize your images on Etsy for Pinterest or create much longer images to showcase your items better.

I will go for tall images if I think they would do well on Pinterest and square photos if they are informational. But any combination would be fine.

Don’t stress. It is better to have a good quality image in the wrong size, then a fuzzy one – every time. 

Test your first image on Etsy and view it in zoom option – to ensure you have done it correctly. 

Where can I make my listing photos for Etsy?

I usually use Photoshop, which is part of the Adobe suite and is a paid option. But you can use Canva.com. Simply create a new design at 3000px wide and 2250px tall, then download at high quality. You can use the free version to generate and download these. 

With regards to your other images – you can use 3000px wide and 4000px tall. If you would like to optimize for Pinterest, they require a ratio of 2:3 – so that is two parts across the bottom and three parts tall.

If you upload an image which is less than 2000 px wide, Etsy will prompt you that the image would look better at least 2000px.

However, if you start trying to upload these to Etsy, they will be too small. 

Note: if you are uploading your Pins to your website, then the ideal Pinterest size is 1000px along the bottom and 1500 tall. – But check with Pinterest for the latest optimum size.

To limit the workload – I often upload an image to Etsy which is 1500 along the bottom and 3000 tall. This way I can pin it straight to Etsy from my shop. Don’t use this size for your first Image on Etsy.

Be wary that this action doesn’t make your shop images jump around when the customer is viewing them. You don’t want your shop to look unprofessional. 

I’ve also tricked the system by uploading a tall image for Pinterest as my first image on Etsy, but which crops to show the correct size and image in search. I.e, the picture looks correct in search but can be used to pin on Pinterest as well. 

But don’t worry about this too much for now. Just ensure you follow the Etsy best practices. 

You can also use Picmonky if you prefer, This is a paid app, but lets you do mostly the same as Canva.com. Both are excellent options if you want to work quickly and remember to save your branding on images. 

Do not add images of the products and slap a ‘copyright’ notice on them. 

Me – I’ve done this. Whilst you may think you are protecting your images, in real terms you are not inviting the buyer to buy. At the very least, it looks unprofessional.

You are in the business of selling, and we need to maximize our chances on Etsy. 

How can I improve my Etsy listing photos?

Create a variety of images of your products, from above, in use, and highlight the best bits, even in close up. 

Try to use all of the image spaces. So ten images if you can, without duplications. 

Keep your pictures the same. If you advertise your beautiful jewelry on driftwood, then stick to this theme throughout. Don’t suddenly start using strange colors and odd stand-out images.

Look professional. You may be a one-person band, but your customers don’t need to know this

Give them more information than they need – answer questions with images. 

Trial and error is the best method, or you could take a course on photography.

Can I use my iPhone to take images for Etsy?

Well, yes, of course. Most iPhones have excellent cameras these days and improve each time you upgrade. Remember to use the back camera and clean your lens before you start.

Don’t worry if they are not perfect; you can crop them later.

If you are unsure of your Camera resolution – go to your Apple and see how big your camera is first – I also found this handy guide on resolution sizes.

What should I name my Etsy listing photos?

Etsy changes all the names of the images you upload anyway, but this doesn’t mean it will stay like that. You should name your images with SEO (search engines) in mind. 

But this is a waste of time. Right?

Yes, it is as Etsy just use the listing title as the alt text to the image anyway. 

But we are building a business here, and you never upload an image on the web without it having the correct name for keywords and SEO. So why not get into a good habit now. 

Besides you will find the image on your computer easier as well. 

Here is an example, I mean. 

Not – ‘image 12345’

But – ‘Blue stone engagement ring’

In case you are wondering like me – should I upload my images after I have written my title? – Don’t worry; it’s when you publish that the listing title is attached to your pictures. 

How many photos should I use on Etsy?

I think you should aim for the fence and go with the full ten images -but only if your item warrants it. 

So if you are selling a wooden bird box, yes, ten images might be simple to achieve, – more difficult would be if you sold stickers. 

What other images should I use on my Etsy listings?

Many sellers get stuck on this point – but there are lots of ways to fill all ten images slots. 

Other image ideas for Etsy

• A coupon code
• Helpful usage ideas
• Product in use
• Matching products
• Join the email list
• See my other items
• Find me on social media
• Other angles of course
• Different colors of the item
• Popular images you have shared on Instagram
• Frequently asked questions
• Sizing instructions

The list goes on. 

You can also create some Pin-worthy images to promote your shop using Pinterest. 

Tips to make your Etsy listing images better.

Some items will, of course, look better in images than others. Some will be more difficult to capture and convert into a sale. Here are a few tips for getting the best images for your products on Etsy

• use natural light
• Don’t overcrowd your item with unrelated items
• Keep your item in the middle of the image
• make sure your images are high resolution and the correct size
• use a lightbox if you need to
• leave some white space around the item so the buyer can focus on your product

Final thoughts on Etsy listing photo sizes –

Create them at 3000px wide

1. Use Canva or Picmonkey
2. Use your iPhone to create images
3. Keep the light natural
4. Check your images are not blurry
5. Check your images on mobile
6. Use all the available images
7. Keep getting better

If you want to know more about taking images using your iPhone, I can recommend this course which teaches you how to best use your iPhone camera. 

If you have a larger camera – or just want to improve your photography, the course I recommend is Emma Davis – she has a year’s course and it’s completely free.

Iphoneography is perfect for beginner and those who wish to take their images to a new level. 

If you are just starting and need help opening an Etsy shop – 

I hope you enjoyed this post on how to Size your Etsy listing photos. Please let me know in the comments if you have any questions.

If you really want to know the reality of Etsy – you can read my long post of things I wish I had got right.

Choosing a shop name

Starting an Etsy shop

Guide to Etsy tags